Kickstarter Sorry for 'Disturbing' Sex Guide ...

... but book is still getting its money

(Newser)
–
Kickstarter says it's sorry it allowed a project for what critics are calling a "how-to guide on sexual assault," but that it's now too late to deny the book its funds. The controversy began when a popular regular on Reddit's pickup artist sub-forum "seddit" decided to use the crowd-funding site to self-publish his bookAbove the Game: A Guide to Getting Awesome with Women. If you're not offended by pickup artistry in general, the project looked innocuous enough—or it did, until variouspeoplespotted an eyebrow-raising post Ken Hoinsky had made about sexual aggression. Some choice quotes (others are more graphic):

"Never, ever, ever, wait for a SIGN before you escalate! You will miss out on the vast majority of chances if you sit around waiting for SIGNS. … From now on you must ASSUME that she is attracted to you and wants to be ravished."

"Physically pick her up and sit her on your lap. Don't ask for permission. Be dominant. Force her to rebuff your advances."

"All that matters is that you continue to try to escalate physically until she makes it genuinely clear that it's not happening."

Hoinsky says the post is being taken out of context—it assumes you've already gone on dates with the woman. "If 'Don't wait for signs, make the first move' promotes sexual assault, then 'Kiss the Girl' from The Little Mermaid was a song about rape," he argues. But that didn't quell the uproar; a petition to take down the post garnered almost 58,000 signatures. Kickstarter didn't do that, and in a blog post today it admits it should have. The page is now gone, but Kickstarter says it can't do anything about the money the project got from donors while it was up. The site will donate $25,000 to the anti-sexual assault group RAINN in penance, and is banning all "seduction guides" from now on.

Ken Hoinsky talks about his book "Above the Game" in the video for its Kickstarter project.
(Kickstarter)

The idea that this turns people into rapists is like blaming Marilyn Manson for Columbine.

K.KRANK

Jun 22, 2013 3:52 PM CDT

They should rename that book, do sort of the GNU thing's "GNU's not Unix!" : "Rape Applied Practically & Effortlessly" It can go by its acronym R.A.P. & E. or the shorter R.A.P.E.

milosleubner

Jun 22, 2013 12:59 PM CDT

flat liners on all sides can't leave anything and anybody to live their lives. The most obvious attempts to erase sexuality from human lives is ,due to nonsexual reptilian creatures , considered the norm - as usually through censorship and installing feeling of guilt in the feeble minded most vocal groups . The trip that they are succeeding to separate sexuality from our other functioning (what ever is left of it) and create completely false and plastic "reality" of fear ,confusion ,guilt , accusation of being human ,insane standards of behavior . Same ,of course ,goes for so called rascism ,professionalism , artificially forced gap between family members , endless calls for "equality" between apples and oranges - all this to further modify YOU into energy dripping slave they will keep on harvesting . Just live your own life , don't associate based on fear ,enjoy beauty of Creation because it is there for you and you are part of it. You are a breath of fresh air so fill your lungs all the way , aware heart, open to others and yourself needs no conditioned thought to live and prosper , mystery of life is in living it from oneself without the dictates of the KNOWN.

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